Honghuang: My understanding is beyond belief. I am the first immortal of Jiejiao.

"Lin Zhu! You can't escape!"

The voice of Di Ting resounded directly within the primordial spirit.

Lin Zhu's vision went black, but he bit his tongue to stay awake.

As the rainbow light swept across the boundary of the eighteenth level of hell, he vaguely heard the Styx Lord's loud laughter intertwined with the angry shouts of the Buddhists.

The moment Lin Zhu finally burst out of the underworld exit, he could no longer maintain his escape technique and crashed heavily onto the banks of the River of Oblivion.

He struggled to sit up and suddenly realized that two figures had been waiting for him for a long time.

"Venus?"

Lin Zhu squinted his bleeding eyes and recognized the white-bearded old man holding a whisk.

Beside her, a girl named Xiaoqiong with her hair in two buns was anxiously stamping her feet, while the star chart at her waist emitted a glaring warning.

Venus sighed and waved his whisk, scattering a shower of healing starlight.

"Master Lin, I have been waiting here for a long time on the orders of the Jade Emperor."

Lin Zhu cautiously took a half step back, which aggravated her wound and caused her to cough up blood a few more times.

"When did the Heavenly Court become so concerned with the affairs of the Underworld?"

"It's not a matter for the underworld."

Xiao Qiong was so anxious that she kept tugging at Taibai Jinxing's sleeve.

"It's Mount Ling! Buddha has led three thousand monks to surround the South Heavenly Gate, and the incarnations of the three sages have all appeared!"

Venus added solemnly.

"It's all because of the marriage between Master Lin and Yin Wenjiao that the heavenly secrets of the Journey to the West have been disrupted. Now the cause and effect of the Three Realms are in chaos, and Buddha demands an explanation from the Heavenly Court."

"System task."

Return to Heaven immediately for an emergency meeting to thwart the Western Religion's conspiracy. Mission reward.

A hundred million years of cultivation, the final fragment of the God-Slaying Spear, and the great supernatural power 'Resurrection'.

A cold, mechanical voice suddenly echoed in Lin Zhu's mind. He was still seething with anger because of the grievance he had just suffered, but his eyes lit up when he saw the generous reward.

"accept!"

He shouted it in his heart without hesitation, and then patted his chest and shouted it out to the void.

"To stand up for the Heavenly Court is my duty, Lin Zhu!"

"Cough cough."

This slap aggravated the injury in Lin Zhu's chest, and he couldn't help but cough up a mouthful of golden blood.

Upon seeing this, Venus rushed forward, his white eyebrows furrowed.

"Fellow Daoist Lin, your injury..."

Lin Zhu casually wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and grinned.

"A mere fatal wound, nothing serious."

Venus looked at the gruesome wound on his chest that almost pierced through his body, with blood still seeping out as golden light flowed around him, and couldn't help but feel a deep sense of awe.

"Fellow Daoist Lin is selfless and altruistic, truly a role model for our Heavenly Court!"

"Xiao Qiong, go back to Kunlun Mountain and wait for me."

Lin Zhu turned to the girl beside him and spoke, his eyes filled with tenderness.

Xiao Qiong bit her lip, tears welling in her eyes.

But your injury...

"obedient."

Lin Zhu ruffled her hair.

"I'll come find you after I've finished dealing with things here."

After everyone had dispersed, Lin Zhu took out a red rope from his pocket, and with a gentle shake, it turned into a shower of red sand.

In the red sand, a figure bound hand and foot was faintly visible. It was none other than Dantuo Dizang.

"Come on, I'll take you to see your family's Buddha."

Lin Zhu sneered, dragging the prisoner into the air.

Outside the South Heavenly Gate, hidden dangers lurk amidst the swirling celestial clouds.

The celestial beings of Heaven and the Buddhas of the Western Paradise were locked in a tense standoff, with the atmosphere on the verge of conflict.

The Jade Emperor sat solemnly atop his nine-dragon chariot.

He thought to himself.

"Why hasn't Lin Zhu arrived yet? We mustn't let him leave any evidence against us."

Just then, a red light streaked across the sky, accompanied by a mocking voice.

"Oh dear, everyone, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting!"

All the immortals turned around in unison, and saw Lin Zhu standing on red clouds, holding a red rope in his hand, with the disheveled Dzang Tsultrim Lodro tied to the other end of the rope.

The golden body of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva was dim, and his robe was tattered. Where was the slightest bit of the Bodhisattva's majesty?
"Lin Zhu!"

The Buddha's dignified face instantly distorted, and golden light surged forth.

"How dare you humiliate my Bodhisattva of the Western Paradise like this?!"

Lin Zhu landed lightly, and the red sand automatically returned to her sleeve, leaving only Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva kneeling on the ground with a thud.

He looked around, feigning surprise.

"Oh, so angry? I just invited Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva to the Heavenly Court as a guest."

"presumptuous!"

The Buddha roared in anger and struck out with a palm, the golden Buddha handprint covering the sky and pressing down on the bamboo forest.

This palm strike, unleashed in fury, was intended to kill Lin Zhu on the spot!

At the critical moment, a clear and melodious sword cry resounded through the sky.

The Jade Emperor, wielding the Haotian Sword, unleashed a brilliant sword strike that cleaved the Buddha's hand seal in two. With undiminished force, the sword severed the Buddha's right index finger at the root!

"what!"

The Buddha cried out in pain, and golden blood splattered among the clouds.

The Jade Emperor sheathed his sword and stood there, speaking in a cold voice.

"Buddha, as a saint, you disregard the rules and attack a junior. Are you trying to start a war with my Heavenly Court?"

The Void Emperor Dao Lord took a step forward, and the Yin and Yang energies circulated around his body.

"The Western religions are so arrogant, committing atrocities outside my Southern Heavenly Gate?"

Lao Tzu lightly swept his whisk and said calmly.

"Buddha, that's enough."

Seeing this, Patriarch Bodhi quickly smoothed things over.

"Please calm your anger, everyone. The Buddha acted rashly in a moment of panic. After all, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva is an important figure in our Western Paradise."

"So, important figures can steal ghosts from my underworld?"

Lin Zhu suddenly interrupted loudly, and his words caused an uproar among the immortals.

Laozi frowned slightly.

"Lin Zhu, tell me in detail."

Lin Zhu straightened his clothes, standing ramrod straight despite the bleeding from his chest wound.

He first bowed to the Jade Emperor and the other Daoist masters, then pointed to the Dāntāra Ksitigarbha statue on the ground, his voice clear and resonant.

"Your Majesty, fellow Daoists, I have been ordered to descend to the Underworld to investigate the affairs of the ghosts. I have discovered that this Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva has been repeatedly stealing from evil ghosts who have not yet been punished, disrupting the cycle of cause and effect and violating the heavenly laws!"

The Buddha's eyes widened in anger.

"Nonsense! Ksitigarbha made a great vow, 'I will not become a Buddha until hell is emptied,' how could that be?"

"How could you steal from someone in charge?"

Lin Zhu sneered and pulled an account book from his sleeve.

"This is a record of ghosts in the underworld over the past thousand years. Please take a look. Of all the evil ghosts 'delivered' by Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, eight or nine out of ten were reincarnated within the sphere of influence of the Western Paradise, and..."

He deliberately dragged out his tone.

"They've all become guardian deities of Buddhism!"

Laozi took the ledger and examined it together with the Void Emperor Daoist. The more they looked, the more somber their expressions became.

"What's even more exciting is..."

Lin Zhu continued.

"When I confronted this bodhisattva about it, he actually tried to kill me to silence me!"

He ripped open his shirt, revealing the gruesome wound.

"This is the evidence! If I didn't have some survival skills, I would have been annihilated by now."

A cold glint flashed in the Jade Emperor's eyes.

"Buddha, what is your explanation for this matter?"

The Buddha's expression was uncertain; the golden blood at the severed finger had stopped, but his anger and shock were even greater.

He said in a deep voice, “Even if Ksitigarbha is at fault, it should be dealt with by the Western Paradise. Lin Zhu’s unauthorized capture of the Bodhisattva is what breaks the rules!”

"rule?"

Lin Zhu suddenly burst into laughter.

"Why didn't Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva follow the rules when he was stealing ghosts in the underworld? Why didn't he follow the rules when he wanted to kill me?"

The laughter stopped abruptly, and he looked coldly at Buddha.

"Today, I, Lin Zhu, will act on behalf of Heaven and imprison this hypocritical Bodhisattva in the Heavenly Prison, so that he can learn a lesson from the best and become a true Bodhisattva!"

Inside the Lingxiao Palace, golden light shone brightly, and auspicious clouds swirled around.

The gods and Buddhas stood on both sides, but the atmosphere was so solemn it seemed to drip water.

Lin Zhu, dressed in a long black robe, stood with his hands behind his back in the center of the hall, a cold smile on his lips, his gaze sweeping over the people from the Western Paradise like a knife.

"Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva has privately established eighteen levels of hell, arbitrarily altered the Book of Life and Death, and forcibly seized the merits of the deceased. Such crimes are known throughout the Three Realms!"

Lin Zhu's voice wasn't loud, but it was like a thunderclap, making the glazed tiles inside the hall vibrate.

"Today, before all the gods and Buddhas, I will act on behalf of Heaven and sentence him to have his soul scattered and his spirit destroyed!"

"presumptuous!"

The Buddha's golden body swelled dramatically, and the Buddha wheel behind his head shone brightly, causing the entire Lingxiao Palace to tremble.

"How dare a mere minor deity from Heaven speak ill of the Bodhisattvas of Buddhism?"

All the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of the Western Paradise glared angrily, and their Buddha-light pressed down on the bamboo forest like a tidal wave.

The pure vase in Guanyin Bodhisattva's hand tilts slightly, and the willow branches move without wind; the blue lion under Manjushri Bodhisattva roars, its fangs menacing; the white elephant of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva twitches its long trunk, as if it wants to shatter the void.

Lin Zhu remained unmoved, his robes fluttering in the wind, and a faint blue light emanated from his body, blocking all the Buddha's light from within three feet.

His sneer deepened.

"What? Is the Western Paradise about to rebel?"

"Lin Zhu! You've gone too far!"

Enraged, the Buddha shattered the jade table before him with a single palm strike, revealing his golden form with a thousand hands and a thousand eyes. The terrifying pressure caused many celestial officials in the hall to tremble in fear and nearly kneel down.

The Jade Emperor sat upright on his dragon throne, his brows slightly furrowed. He lightly waved his whisk, and a soft golden light enveloped the hall, neutralizing the Buddha's oppressive aura.

He coughed lightly.

"Buddha, please calm your anger regarding this matter."

"Jade Emperor!"

Lin Zhu suddenly interrupted loudly, turned to face the Supreme Being of the Three Realms, and bowed respectfully.

"Article 3600 of the Heavenly Laws clearly states that all sentient beings in the Three Realms shall abide by the laws of the Heavenly Court. Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva has arbitrarily altered life and death and forcibly seized merits; according to the law, he should be executed!"

His gaze was like lightning, fixed directly on the Jade Emperor.

"Your Majesty is the supreme ruler of the Three Realms appointed by the Dao Ancestor. Are you perhaps going to condone the Western Paradise's disregard for the Heavenly Rules today?"

The Jade Emperor's eyelids twitched, and the whisk in his hand trembled slightly.

How could he not know what Ksitigarbha was doing in the underworld? It was just that Buddhism was powerful and there were three saints behind him, so he, the Jade Emperor, had no choice but to turn a blind eye.

Now that Lin Zhu has brought this up in public, he is secretly annoyed, but he has no choice but to express his opinion.

"This is what Minister Lin said."

The Jade Emperor carefully considered the wording, glancing out of the corner of his eye at the three saintly figures who were resting with their eyes closed on the side of the hall.

As if sensing something, Laozi slightly opened his eyes, and a chaotic aura flowed through the hall, causing the temperature to drop sharply.

Although Yuanshi Tianzun and Tongtian Jiaozhu did not open their eyes, their auras changed accordingly.

Upon seeing this, the Buddha's golden body paused slightly, and the thousand-armed Dharma form slowly retracted.

His face was so gloomy it could drip water.

"Lin Zhu, don't be so arrogant just because you have someone backing you up! Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva saves sentient beings in hell, his merits are immeasurable, how can you slander him?"

"Duhua?"

Lin Zhu chuckled and with a flick of his sleeve, a screen of light unfolded, revealing a scene of the underworld. Countless souls were chained and forced to chant Buddhist scriptures, their golden merits forcibly extracted and channeled into the golden bowl in Ksitigarbha's hand.

"Is this the salvation that Buddha spoke of?"

Lin Zhu's voice suddenly rose.

"To forcibly seize the merits of the dead and force them into eternal slavery is the work of the demonic path!"

The expressions of the Buddhas in the Western Paradise changed drastically, and Guanyin almost dropped the jade bottle from her hand.

They knew all along that these things, but they never imagined that they would be exposed in public.

"enough!"

With a roar, the Buddha's light swept through the hall like a tsunami.

"Lin Zhu! Do you intend to wage war against my Western Paradise today?"

Instead of retreating, Lin Zhu advanced, taking a step forward. A blue lotus bloomed beneath his feet, forcing the Buddha's light to retreat.

"War? Buddha, what great power you have! I only ask one question today: Whose Three Realms are these?"

He turned and surveyed the gods and Buddhas, his voice resounding.

"Is it the Jade Emperor's Three Realms, or yours, Buddha's Three Realms?"

There was a dead silence in the hall.

This question was so pointed that even the three sages slightly opened their eyes.

The Jade Emperor's forehead was beaded with sweat, and he nearly crushed the whisk in his hand.

The Buddha's golden body trembled, and the anger in his eyes almost materialized, yet he hesitated to make a move.

Although the three sage incarnations did not speak, their subtle yet palpable pressure made him wary.

Since no one objects.

Lin Zhu sneered, and a purple-gold gourd flew out from his sleeve.

"Dandak Ksitigarbha, I will today carry out the punishment on behalf of Heaven!"

A stream of chaotic energy spewed from the gourd's mouth, transforming into chains that tightly bound the kneeling Dhritarashtra.

The Ksitigarbha clone was ashen-faced and dared not resist. He was dragged by the chains and flew toward the gourd.

"Lin Zhu! How dare you!"

The Buddha could no longer restrain himself and struck out with a palm, his golden hand covering the sky and the sun, aiming straight for Lin Zhu's head.

"Buddha, please think carefully."

A calm voice rang out, and Laozi lightly waved his whisk, causing the chaotic energy to flow and silently dissolve the Buddha's hand.

"This is the Heavenly Court, not your Western Paradise."

The Buddha's face turned ashen. He withdrew his hand, his knuckles cracking as he clenched it.

"Is Laozi showing favoritism towards this child?"

"It's not about showing favoritism."

Yuanshi Tianzun finally spoke, his voice like rolling thunder.

"The laws of Heaven cannot be disobeyed."

Although the Tongtian Sect Leader did not speak, the phantom images of the Four Swords of Zhuxian were already faintly visible behind him.

The atmosphere in the hall was extremely tense, as if a holy war would break out at any moment.

Upon seeing this, the Jade Emperor quickly tried to smooth things over.

"Please calm down, everyone! Minister Lin, now that Dantuo Dizang has been captured, perhaps..."

"Your Majesty, don't worry."

Lin Zhu put away the purple-gold gourd, a half-smile on his face.

"I only request that Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva stay in the Heavenly Prison for a while to keep Muzha company. I have heard that Muzha has recently invented many new games, which will be a good opportunity for Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva to experience them."

Upon hearing this, the Buddhas of the Western Paradise trembled with rage.

After Muzha was imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison, it is said that he suffered all kinds of torture. Now Lin Zhu actually wants to throw the Ksitigarbha clone into it as well. This is simply the greatest humiliation to Buddhism!

The Buddha, enraged, laughed instead.

"Excellent! Lin Zhu, well done! I'll remember this!"

Lin Zhu didn't care at all, and instead looked at the Jade Emperor.

“Your Majesty, if there is nothing else, I shall take my leave. I still need to arrange for someone to properly ‘entertain’ Dzang Tantuo at the Heavenly Prison.”

The Jade Emperor's lips twitched, inwardly cursing Lin Zhu for his lack of restraint, but he still had to maintain his dignity on the surface.

"Minister Lin, the Emperor is here; you must not be disrespectful."

Lin Zhu shrugged and suddenly kicked the Dāntó Ksitigarbha in mid-air into the gourd.

"Then please forgive me, Your Majesty."

With a "bang," the gourd's mouth closed, and the screams of Dantuo Dizang came to an abrupt end.

The immortals in the hall were silent as cicadas in winter, not daring to even breathe loudly.

The golden light of the Buddha's body flickered erratically, clearly indicating extreme anger, yet he forcefully suppressed the urge to attack.

He suddenly changed the subject. (End of Chapter)